Washington, 15 July 1997 (RFE/RL) - Kyrgyz President Askar Akayev signed an agreement yesterday with the U.S. Export-Import (Exim) Bank to begin opening his country to financing of imports from America.
The agreement is the standard credit arrangement the Exim Bank demands of all countries which guarantees repayment of any loans that go bad. The Exim Bank lends to foreign buyers of American goods who are not able to arrange normal trade financing.
Akayev is in the second half of a one-week visit to Washington. On Friday, he met with a deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund, Alassane Outtara. An IMF spokeswoman says they had a very "constructive meeting" examining future relations and the prospects for a successor program to the current three-year enhanced structural adjustment facility.
Bishkek received the third year's annual loan of around $44 million from that program at the end of March. A successor program would be worked out to begin when this one ends in March of next year.